1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to plug means, arrangement or member for providing a lockable sealing function at a passage opening, and that has a support surface intended for properly positioning the plug means.
2. Background
Today""s environmental requirements relating to internal combustion engines specify that crankcase ventilation of the engine should pass through oil-separation arrangements intended for such purpose. Additionally, the crankcase is to be designed so that the risk of leakage to the environment is minimized.
There are also fire safety requirements for flammable liquids such as engine oil specifying that such liquids should not be permitted to spread from a vehicle, even in the event of engine break-down or other trouble. In the event of an engine seizure, for example, great overpressures can arise inside the crankcase. To meet the requirements, it should not be possible for such overpressures to cause, for example, dipstick that extends down into the crankcase to be pressured out of its normal mounting position. Although the oil level in an internal combustion engine can be monitored electronically, it is still advantageous to be able to visually inspect the condition of the oil, and particularly, its level in the engine.
Dipsticks with locking means are known; for example, bayonet-style mounts and the like are known which make it possible to rotate the dipstick into a locking position. There is always a risk, however, that locking will not be correctly effected and the sealing function can be lost. Still further, the known plug means can be troublesomely unwieldy, and therefore it is desirable for a plug means of this nature to be easy to handle by an operator and adapted to be easily guided into and out of its locking position without difficulty.
An object of the present invention, therefore, is to produce a lockable plug means that is easy to demount (remove) and also to fit into a locked use configuration.
To this end, the present plug means is characterized by a sealing plug adapted for interaction with the sides of the passage opening and having a retaining means connected to the sealing plug for interaction with a hook means connected to the passage. A flexible and resilient connecting element is provided between the sealing plug and the retaining means. By virtue of this design of the plug means, the retaining means can easily be guided into or out of its retaining position against the action of the flexible resilient connecting element.
It should be appreciated that further advantageous and illustrative embodiments of the invention are possible, and in fact will emerge to those persons skilled in the art by way of the present disclosure.